Energon Discharge Virus
by PrimeEmily135
Summary: Due to stress the symptoms of the Energon Discharge Virus can resurface to finish it's work. Optimus should have just stayed in bed... Slight OptimusxArcee


**This was originally supposed to be a full fledged story and a lot more dramatic but I ended up just making it a one shot. Enjoy! :)**

**Warning! Miko is insensitive and makes some inappropriate jokes.**

* * *

Optimus knew when he awoke from recharge that he should have just stayed in his berth. Something told him that today was just going to be one of those awful wretched days where nothing went right. And already he had a processor ache...

But, he heaved himself up off from his berth and swung his legs around to land his feet firmly on the floor, and he sat up. And so his day began.

* * *

"Optimus, I'm detecting a strong Energon signature. And no Decepticon activity." Ratchet said, his tone almost excited. "We should check it out before they arrive to pillage it."

"I agree, Ratchet." Optimus said, sending a quick transmission to Bumblebee and Arcee who were heading back to base. Bulkhead was still waiting at school for Miko to get out of detention. If the situation became dire, he would be called to duty as well. "Where exactly is-" he started to ask, but a churning in his tanks made him stop. The feeling passed quickly an he dismissed it as not refueling that morning. Instead of continuing with his question he decided to rectify his lack of fuel.

As he retrieved an Energon cube from the med bay storage he heard Arcee and Bumblebee enter the base. Jack and Raf hopped out onto the floor with joyful shouts, obviously glad to be done with school for the week, but the noise only served to make his processor throb with pain. He wished they would quiet down...

[What's going on?] Bumblebee chirped up, adding to Optimus splitting helm ache.

"Another Energon scouting mission?" Arcee guessed, looking over at the computer console. Optimus nodded slowly, taking another large gulp of Energon before setting it aside to be finished later.

"You two will be joining me on this expedition. It should not take long." he assured, knowing that the two of them probably did not want to go on such a monotonous mission. But it was necessary, and they knew it. They both nodded and he felt a small amount of relief that they didn't say another word about it. He looked to Ratchet for confirmation that the groundbridge was set and the medic nodded. "Autobots-" he stopped suddenly feeling his tanks turn again, only this time more violently. His knees felt a little weak but he managed to stay upright with only the slightest cringe of discomfort.

"..uh, roll out?" Arcee looked up at him in concern as he stood their blankly. "You okay sir? You don't seem well."

"I am fine." he assured, standing up taller. "Let's go-" his optics widened as nausea gripped at his insides, and he could feel something start to come up- "Oh scrap!-" he quickly ducked to the side, grasping at his abdomen in pain. His breaths started to become labored and heavy, and he had to lean against the wall with one hand to steady himself. "Oh...oh _Scrap_!" he crumbled to his knees and he heard Bumblebee whir in worry as he dry heaved.

"Optimus, what's wrong?" Ratchet asked, and it was then that Energon started to purge from Optimus's lips. He bent forward in pain and continued to empty his insides out onto the floor. He panted heavily, trying to cool his quickly overheating systems, but it was a pointless feat, and he was soon forced into stasis.

* * *

"Ugh..my helm..." Optimus opened his optics slowly and was instantly met with a bright light shining in his face. He groaned, and tried to move his servo to block the light but found himself too weak to move. "What-what happened?"

"Optimus, take it easy." Ratchet's voice was softer than usual, worry evident in his optics. He patted him in the chest, motioning for him to stay lying down. "You need to rest. Your systems are working overload trying to repair itself."

"What made me black out? I don't-" he grimaced as the lighted brightened in his face. "I don't remember.."

"You've attracted a virus, well, actually it was already inside of you.. Simply dormant. You have been victim of the Energon Discharge virus before, early on in the war if I remember correctly."

He nodded slowly, his processor pulsing painfully. "Yes, we counteracted the affects and were able to stabilize my condition a while ago. Why has it come out of dormancy?" the medic provided him with a mere shrug for an answer. "How long will it take to make the antidote?"

"A few days... Maybe three if we're lucky." Ratchet gave him a cross look as he tried to sit up. "Optimus, as your doctor and friend I am hereby confining you to the med bay, and further more to that berth. If you stress yourself the conditions will only get worse. So, no getting up, no issuing orders, no stress. Stay right where you are and don't move. I'll be back as soon as I find the right supplies."

Optimus let a tired breath escape his lips and his helm fell back onto the berth with a solid 'thunk'. The action caused him to moan in pain as stars danced before his optics. Already he could feel the Energon drain in his systems start to take affect. The virus was programmed to make his body purge all Energon until he was completely drained. He had to keep an I.V. line to slow the process. If he didn't death would be slow and painful.

This was going to be a very long few days...

* * *

"Hey Optimus, how are you feeling-"

"Yeah! How's it goin' bossbot?" Miko rushed to interrupt Raf's concerned statement, but Optimus couldn't find the will to reprimand her. Only a few hours had gone by, but already he could feel the helm ache getting worse. His spark was beating irregularly and harder at times, causing pain to shoot through his chest.

He grimaced as another wave of pain hit him, and he let a mangled groan escape him.

"Uh, guys? Why don't we go play some video games, over-over here." Jack steered the others away, seeming to sense his discomfort.

Then there was silence. Welcomed and relief filled silence. Optimus let his guard down and moaned softly. He had forgotten how badly it hurt to dehydrate so rapidly. All Energon was re-routing to his most important functions. He could already feel his legs going numb...

Tensing, another wave of nausea hit him and he rolled over onto his side to vomit into the provided bucket.

He leaned over the side of the berth for a few minutes, propped up on his elbow as he waited for the feelings to pass. His abdomen and back struts were cramped and his throat was burning like he had just downed a cube of high grade.

"Great! Just great!" Ratchet all but screamed in frustration. Optimus closed his optics tightly a his processor throbbed in objection to the sharp noise. His friend was sputtering something in distress but he couldn't decipher any of it over the noise of the others telling him to be quiet.

"Optimus doesn't need to hear that right now Ratchet." Aecee's calm voice dominated the others and they fell silent. "Don't worry, we'll work something out. We can search the Harbinger, it might have some medical supplies..."

"Optimus doesn't have time for us to go on a scavenger hunt Arcee! He is already destabilizing at an alarming rate that I hadn't predicted. At this moment he has maybe only a day left before going into deep stasis! And after that it is a matter of minutes!"

"Ratch!" She snapped again, her voice dropping to a whisper but he could still manage to make it out. "We have time before that, let's just use it wisely. You, Bumblebee and Bulkhead go look for the counter-virus an ill stay here with Optimus."

::Shouldn't you come with us Arcee?:: Bumblebee whirred questioningly. ::We need all the help we can get, and if you stay here you could be infected.:: he pointed out.

"Arcee has already been exposed to the virus before. She had built an immunity to it back in Cybertron. She is the best option to stay here with Optimus." Ratchet reasoned. "I'm sure he doesn't want to be left alone, even of he won't admit it."

Apparently that had settled the argument and debate. He was faintly aware that the groundbridge was activated but it was all a blur. He blacked out again, just fading out of consciousness for a moment. He returned to the world of awareness when he felt Arcee's servo rest on top of his own.

"Hey..." she whispered softly to him, stroking the top of his servo, tracing the seems in his fingers and wrist. "You in much pain?"

_Pain?! Yeah, you bet!_ "Not enough to complain about." he lied through his denta, but his tone must have betrayed him. "I will be alright as soon as Ratchet creates the antidote." her simple caress of his servo paused and he felt her stiffen. "What is wrong Arcee?"

She looked down at him uncertainly, then with sadness. "Ratchet doesn't have the supplies ready for the anti-virus. He needs to find them."

Optimus nodded sharply, then instantly regretted it as Energon arose in his throat again. Arcee quickly took the hint to move as he turned over onto his side again to purge into the bucket. "I...expected as much..." he gasped, spitting what was left of the fowl taste in his mouth into the bucket. "Arcee, is the Energon line inserted correctly?" he asked, feeling no difference in his aching arm than the rest of his aching body. Arcee checked it and nodded.

"It doesn't feel like it is working..." he muttered quietly, surprising himself that he had actually said it aloud. Arcee gave him a sympathetic look and patted his shoulder lightly.

"Ratchet will be back soon." she assured him.

"I can only hope..."

* * *

It was a few hours before the sneezing started. It was the main affect of the virus, and undeniably the most painful part of it. The jerking motions coupled with the helm ache and exhaustion was not a pleasant combination. And it furthered to deplete his Energon.

"Arcee, please tell me we have some sort of sedative..." Optimus practically pleaded, holding the large cloth over his mouth to prevent Energon contamination to the area around him. Arcee shook her helm sadly.

"No Optimus, you can't have a sedative or numbing agents right now. Ratchet's orders." she said, sneaking a glance over her shoulder at the computer console. He could see plainly that she was growing anxious at the lack of contact that was going on. The rest of the team hadn't reported since they'd left.

"Who knew the big tough bot was such a baby when it came to being sick?" Miko's comment was quickly scolded by Jack, but instead of being upset, Optimus chuckled. Arcee gave him a surprised look and he smiled a lighthearted grimace.

"It is partially true." he explained. "I hate being sick..." he sneezed again, three times in a row before lying back onto the berth to cough the rest up out of his throat. He wiped the residue away from his lips with the cloth and sighed. "My body cramps and I feel like I can't think straight..." and obviously he lost his iron grip on his emotions as well. He couldn't remember the last time he felt so un-Prime like.

"Well, where does it hurt most?"

Optimus wanted to answer that everything hurt so fragging equally that he couldn't pick what hurt worse. His helm gave another heavy pulse as if screaming _"pick me! pick me! I hurt the most!"_ but he decided to go with something less obvious. "My abdomen tends to cramp the most."

"Goodness, you'd think he was going through _menzies_.." Miko snorted, earning a whack to the top of her head. "What? He has cramps. He's losing Energon-"

"Shut up Miko!" Both Raf and Jack scolded her and she finally fell silent again.

Optimus looked up at Arcee in confusion as she laughed. "Oh, you don't want to know." she explained and he let his optics roll back into his helm in exasperation. "Here... Maybe I can help..."

He jumped in surprise as her small servos pressed softly against his abdominal armor. She stayed still when he tensed, but when he relaxed she started to rub up and down slowly. The motion relieved the area of some pain, warming his insides a little bit too. A held up breath passed his lips slowly in ecstasy. It was a simple touch but it had an amazing power to relax his tense frame.

"Arcee..." she hushed him softly, reaching forward to touch his face. He knew that he was feverish, but apparently it was worse than he had thought. Her expression deepened with worry and he felt his spark clench. He didn't like seeing her like that. "Arcee..." his servo weakly came up to wrap around her smaller one, bringing it down to rest it over his spark chamber instead. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine." he gave her a small smile but it quickly turned to a cringe as pain flooded through his body once again.

* * *

"_How long_?!"

Optimus groaned at Arcee's outburst, turning his helm to look away from her and Ratchet. His Energon reserves were depleted, but if they weren't he was sure he could throw up again.

After another few hours Ratchet had come back and hooked an Energon line directly to his spark chamber. It was painful, but it would keep him alive and that was all that mattered. After assuring him that the wait was almost over, he had gone to recreate the anti-virus. Unfortunately it needed time to gestate. Apparently more time than what was figured he had left.

"We cannot lose hope. He has made it this far. Just stay with him Arcee, and tell me if there are any changes in his condition."

Optimus closed his optics slowly and opened them again when he felt the small femme sit beside him. She had tears in her optics, some even spilled down her cheeks like little waterfalls. He realized, she thought he wasn't going to make it.

"Arcee..." his voice was hoarse and scratchy, painful to even his own audios, but she gave him a small smile. "Everythjng is going to be alright." She nodded but his words didn't seem to sink in or provide any comfort. He could beleive why. Things weren't looking very good for him.

"Optimus, would it be so horrible if I hugged you right now?"

His optics widened at the request, surprised to say the least. But he didn't deny her. He couldn't deny even to himself that he craved some close contact. "No, it would be welcomed..actually.." he gasped, feeling completely out of breath. His body was overheating more drastically now and he just couldn't seem to get enough cool air into his systems. His vision flickered in and out occasionally but the worst thing was that he couldn't feel more than half of his body..

He could hear her shuffling on the berth to lay beside him, but he could only feel her servo on his center chest. It was cold compared to him, but almost comforting. Calming even. "Arcee.. I wish..I could..." he tried to say that he wished he had more time. He could feel himself slowly starting to die, and he wished for just one moment that he could be allowed to show emotion. Real emotion. Raw unadulterated feelings of love and despair. He wanted to show her what he really felt but he couldn't. As a Prime he was to forsake emotions, and never feel attachment.

"A-Arcee-" he choked, his chest heaving now with a renewed force. "I-I want to tell you that...that..." he saw her move to peer into his face. Her gaze was panicked. She started to shout something that he couldn't hear. His vision started to ebb at the sides, and the last thing he saw and felt was Arcee's small servos on each side of his face.

* * *

"Optimus...Optimus wake up... Wake Up!"

"Mm!" he grunted, but didn't want to ward off the wonderful feeling of deep recharge.

"Scrap you Optimus!" something wet and very, very cold splashed down over his face and he jumped to alertness with a yelp of surprise. His body was on fire despite the cold shower just bestowed upon him. His limbs ached and his Energon veins itched.

"Ratchet!" he gasped, nearly toppling over the edge of the berth in his hurry to get up. "Why on Cybertron would you-you do that?" he shivered, bringing his arms up to wrap around his chest. His whole body was tingling with life again...or the sudden coldness. He couldn't be sure of which.

Ratchet gave him a look of relief, and then turned back to his monitors. "How do you feel?"

Honestly, he felt like he had just been hard boiled and then flash frozen. "I am alive..." he chattered vaguely. He felt a large thermal blanket being tucked around his shoulders and Arcee tugged it around him to hold it in front of his chest. He reached out with shaking servos to take hold of it but she held it in place for him.

"You just went through a major cool down." she said, picking some lint off of the blanket idly. "You should start feeling better soon."

"A-Arcee-" his optics clenched shut along with his mouth as the chill settled in full.

She hushed him quietly and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Don't ever scare me like that again." she hissed, just so he could hear. He nodded mutely in response, and he felt her soft lips press against his cheek. "I don't think I could stand possibly losing you again..."

Optimus sighed deeply, wrapping his arms around her petite waist. "Believe me, I do not wish to do this again any time soon..."

* * *

Hours after being released from the medical berth, Optimus sat outside on the roof, basking in the sun's warming rays. It felt good against his frame and the time alone was something he also enjoyed. He reflected on the fact that a mere day ago he had been dying, and the only sensations he felt were relief and regret. Relief that he had not passed into the Well of Sparks, but regret that if he had he would not have been able to rest in peace. He would always have been troubled by the fact that he had never told his team, his friends, how much they meant to him. How much he loved Arcee. How thankful he was that Ratchet was like a father to him. How much he saw Bumblebee and Bulkhead like little brothers. There was so much that he wished he could tell them all. But he couldn't.

But maybe...someday, when he was no longer needed to be their leader... Maybe then he could express the things he wished to. He could only hope that that day wasn't far away...

* * *

**Leave a Review and have an awesome week! :)**


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